Cam bolt apparatus are used in automotive vehicle suspensions to provide adjustment between respective components of the suspension system to control wheel alignment, such as camber, caster, and/or tow alignment. Cam bolt apparatus typically include a bolt, a first cam washer fixed to the bolt proximate to the bolt head, a second cam washer engaged to a shank of the bolt distal from the bolt head, and a nut that may be threaded onto a threaded portion of the bolt to secure the bolt to a cam bracket. The bolt and the cam washers are eccentrically arranged, such that rotation of the apparatus about a cam washer adjusts a position of a longitudinal axis of the bolt within accommodating slots formed in the cam bracket. With a control arm or other suspension component linked to the cam bolt, such positional adjustment correspondingly adjusts the automotive suspension component position, thereby affecting a suspension alignment characteristic, such as wheel camber.
The extent of suspension characteristic adjustment afforded by the above described conventional cam bolt apparatus is limited by the degree of eccentricity of the cam bolt to the cam washer axis. The degree of suspension adjustment has therefore been limited to the eccentric offset, which is typically between about 0.5-3° degrees of adjustment. In some circumstances, such an adjustment range has proven to be insufficient. There is accordingly a need to increase the extent of suspension alignment adjustment afforded by a cam bolt apparatus.